Fisk Quarry Preserve Isle la Motte, The sound of drilling broke the evening quiet near Linda Fitch’s home in Isle La Motte in August of 1995. Linda discovered that one of the oldest fossil reefs on Earth was in danger of being further quarried. To conserve the rock beds, Fitch created an alliance between the Preservation Trust Easy Wildlife No facilities of Vermont (PTV), now the Isle La Motte Preservation Trust (ILMPT), and the Land Trust. “Everyone played a wonderful role,” Linda says of the effort to preserve the 24-acre piece of the 480 million year-old Chazy Formation. With Paul Bruhn’s leadership from the PTV, the quarry became a fossil preserve in 1999. In spite of the quarried portions of the preserve, the intact throughout the preserve allow geologists to study certain fossils known to be older than the fossils at our companion fossil preserve, Goodsell Ridge, further north. Directions and Park Information From Burlington, take Interstate 89 to Exit 17. Take Route 2W through the islands. Just after crossing the bridge between North Hero and Alburgh, look for Route 129. Continue on 129 over the bridge to Isle La Motte. Route 129 becomes the Main Road-- Follow this road south until you see Quarry Road and the Historical Society on your left. Continue on this road until you see the Fisk Quarry sign and a small gravel parking lot on your right. Trails lead you to an information kiosk.

This Fossil Preserve is managed by the ILMPT; the Lake Champlain Land Trust retains a conservation easement to ensure it will remain protected forever. Open dawn to dusk. Due to the delicate nature of Fisk Quarry, no motorized vehicles or bicycles are allowed. Removing any rocks or fossils from the fossil preserve is strictly prohibited.

Fisk Quarry is one of dozens of properties saved by the Lake Champlain Land Trust. Since 1978, the Lake Champlain Land Trust has preserved thousands of acres and miles of shoreline on Lake Champlain. To help us save more irreplaceable natural areas, please donate through our website www.LCLT.org!

One Main Street, Suite 205 Burlington, Vermont 05401 802-862-4150 www.LCLT.org